Blustery Blackpool and Damson Gin!

19th December 2014

CHEERS!    

Remember this, my Damson Gin....

....sampled the small jar....

.....mmmmmm, but decided I wanted more flavour so added a little more sugar to the large jar and will leave it for a few more months!

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The sun was shining this morning so we ventured onto the prom.....

....looking north to the Tower and Central Pier, the icy wind was eye watering....

....gulls waiting for food from the incoming tide...

.....South Pier closed for winter....

.....one man and his dog (RD and Jack)....

.....more gulls waiting for lunch....

.....a view south along the prom, love the shapes of The Pleasure Beach....

.....crashing waves and an ominous sky....

....more great shapes.....

.....the sleet hit us as we left the prom!!

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Received this lovely bouquet...

....the fabric tree was a gift from my niece a few years ago...

....this is my loft work space....

.....yarn bombing items finished and labelled....

.....my desk!!!!!!

My collection of treasures from this year....

.....still making Christmas gifts while listening to an audio book.....

.....lots more to do before Tuesday when we travel down to London!!

Marzipan, Tablet Cover etc

16th December 2015

I have made two Christmas cakes this year, a square for the family and a round for my sister because it is her favourite cake but she doesn't like icing so I cover it with a thick layer of my own marzipan....

.....the left over bits soon disappear!!

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RD put up the bird houses and bug hotel while I was lunching with friends...

.....bug hotel on the shed he built when I was away in London a couple of years ago...

.....do hope he sees some birds visiting.

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I felt the need to start a mixed media 'picture' .....

....gathered some papers, fabrics, lace and a square canvas frame....

.....tore and fiddled...

.....a little machine stitching to secure...

.....still thinking about the next step!!

Watch this space.

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My youngest son, still at home, bought a tablet on Black Friday and I decided to make a cover for it as a surprise present for Christmas. Great idea, until he asked me yesterday if I could possibly make him a cover to protect the screen!!!!

Made it today with fabric from my stash....

......I quilted in straight lines....

....lined it with this jolly fabric and he was delighted!

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This afternoon we made a very quick visit to a lovely garden centre near Garstang....

....Barton Grange have the most amazing displays, both inside and out...

....this metal and glass was at the entrance....

...with a water feature...

....trees interspersed with real trees in the car park...

.....they kept changing colour...

.....we bought bird food, a new bird feeder, compost maker and a cake board!!

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I have also been knitting, cooking, cleaning and wrapping Christmas gifts.....

...hope all your preparations are going well x

Playing with Mixed Media Triangles!!!

13th December 2014

Just a very quick post....

.....I just wanted to have a play this afternoon....

....Christmas card...

...another...

....a background for my paper folded trees...

....need to knit tomorrow!!

The Beach after the Gales

12th December 2014

Today we braved the icy wind and walked along the prom to the beach....

.....a thick rope washed up...

.....so many shells....

....and starfish...

....this almost looks like a family.....

.....a big shell with the creature still inside....

.....this was the reason for all the gulls....

.....in all the years we have lived in Blackpool I have never seen so many sea urchins....

.....more starfish...

....one minute after this was taken we had a sleet storm...

....which produced this amazing rainbow, unfortunately my photo does not show its true beauty!

Arrived home and had hot chocolate and a mince pie!!

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 Yesterday RD made me a 'bug hotel'....

...and last night we went out with 'The Friends of the Park' for our annual Christmas meal to the Casino!! I have never been to a 'gambling establishment' but we spent an enjoyable time after our delicious meal playing Roulette with free chips!! I didn't win once but three of our party went home with £20 which paid for their meal!! 

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This morning I was relaxing with my first cup of coffee of the day and catching up with fb when I saw this post....

http://krokotak.com/2013/11/fold-a-fir-tree/

....so had a go....

.....and another using my Gelli print paper....

......I bought this book from a charity shop a couple of years ago for 50p....

.....cut this square from one of the pages....

...and made another tree....

....the first took about 20 minutes but the last about 10....

....I have always enjoyed paper folding and had fun making my little paper tree forest!

Why not click on the link and make one of your own, I did find the larger square easier to work.....

....happy tree folding!